


It Fell From The Sky

by MaybeNotARobot



Category: Original Work
Genre: Mecha, i have no idea how to tag works, this is my first work too
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-14
Updated: 2018-10-14
Packaged: 2019-08-01 17:24:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16288718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaybeNotARobot/pseuds/MaybeNotARobot
Summary: A mysterious wreckage crash-lands near the Alirelia, a mobile base deployed by the Interstellar Exploration Union.





	It Fell From The Sky

**Author's Note:**

> Glossary (I guess? I used a few original words here)  
> Strider: A bipedal mech, designed for use by a single pilot. About the size of the Titans from Titanfall, with about the same aesthetic, but more humanoid.  
> Interstellar Exploration Union: A union made by the nations of Earth in the 23rd century to explore beyond the Solar System. More commonly known as the IEU.  
> This is also my first work! Hooray! I don't know how to tag things!

A lightning bolt illuminated Behrn’s view for a split second. It was too close for comfort. It was too close to be safe. The electricity overloaded the mech’s systems, rendering all but the cameras inactive and blowing out a monitor. The distinct smell of smoke filled the already cramped and stuffy cockpit. Engine failure. Hundreds, if not thousands of meters in the air. He would have screamed if he could even open his mouth. Warnings blared, lighting the monitors in a ghastly red. Ejecting would be a death sentence, staying inside would be a death sentence. Behrn’s brain was spinning, trying to decide what to do, but his lungs wouldn’t wait for a choice. He tried to hang on to consciousness to no avail. He passed out within seconds.

•••••

“Captain! An unidentified wreckage has been spotted north of building 3. What do you suggest we do?” A surveillance officer said, before turning back to their monitors.  
“Any identifiable markings?” The captain responded.  
“Negative. However, the wreckage has been identified as a Strider, sir.” The captain contemplated his options for a moment before answering.  
“Send a Strider to its location, unarmed. A wreck shouldn’t be dangerous, and whoever’s inside shouldn’t be in any shape to fight.”  
“Yes, sir!” The surveillance officer switched on the communication line to the hangar bay.

“Leos Aila, please report to your Strider for mission debriefing. I repeat, Leos Aila, report to your Strider.” The hangar’s loudspeaker said, crackling slightly.  
“Hey Blonde Bunny, that’s you.” One of the people in the bay cracked. Leos stood up from his repair job and sighed.  
“Sorry, Alice, I’ll get the fuel hose fixed as soon as I get back, alright?” Leos’ ‘affectionate’ nickname worked in more ways than one. He was indeed blonde, and as the base’s sole Strider mechanic, he had to hop around from job to job, usually working on 3 or 4 Striders at once. He was also one of the shortest of the Strider team, and had a weird affinity for any small, fluffy animal found around the base. He instinctively ran towards his personal hangar dock: second from the south side of the hangar. Always. It was routine for him. And his routine was set in stone.

As he approached his Strider, painted pale yellow with deep blue accent stripes, he called out to one of the workers near his machine.  
“Change out the cockpit seat for the tandem seat!”  
“Why’s that? You’re just surveying a wrecked Strider. You’re not gonna need anyone else for that.” They replied from a catwalk.  
“Well there’s bound to be a pilot inside! So on the off chance they’re alive-”  
“Kid, they’re not alive. That fall musta been at least 500 meters. No way is anyone gonna make it through that.”  
“Well- ugh! Just change it, okay?” The worker rolled their eyes as they opened the cockpit hatch to complete the request.

After a few minutes, Leos was sitting in the cockpit, a smaller seat behind him, ready to deploy into the forest his base called home. Acting on learned instinct, he fired up the engine, turned on the monitors, and did the routine joint tests. He took a deep breath, and listened to the near silence of the cockpit. It was only him, and the noises of the Strider, an eternal reminder that he was inside a giant machine.  
“Leos Aila, taking off!” Leos stepped on the throttle, pushing the two joysticks as far as they would go forwards.

After a few minutes of walking after touching down from launch, Leos arrived at the wreckage, opening the cockpit hatch and jumping out of the Strider. Walking over to the wreckage, he pressed on his earpiece, contacting his team back at the base.  
“I’ve arrived at the wreckage, sir. What should I do next?” He said.  
“Survey the wreckage, and see what’s salvageable. If there’s enough usable parts, we’ll send the salvage team your way.” The person on the other end of the line responded.  
“Right.” Leos got to work inspecting the wreck, checking for anything intact enough for use. However, something that caught his attention more than the large amount of usable parts was something, or rather someone, lying on the ground in the middle of the destroyed Strider.

“The pilot…” Leos said, almost whispering. He approached the unmoving body, kneeling besides it. Carefully, he flipped it over, and almost dropped it at what he saw: the entire front of their body was bloodstained. Their face had multiple cuts, bruises, and burn marks all across it. But despite that, Leos heard a faint sound: they were still breathing. Immediately, he contacted the base.  
“Captain, I’m returning to base with the wrecked Strider’s pilot.”  
“Hm? The pilot? State your reasoning for this, Leos, and it better be good.”  
“They’re still alive.” The captain hesitated for a second, before speaking again.  
“Very well. Return to base as soon as possible, and we’ll attempt to treat his wounds.”

•••••

It had been 3 weeks since Leos saved that pilot. Every day, he’d spend an hour or two in the base’s medbay to keep track of how their recovery was going. For the last two weeks, their vitals had been steadily improving, and the medical staff estimated they’d make a full recovery within another month. Leos fidgeted with a pen as he sat next to the hospital bed, staring at the unconscious body that lied in it. Until he saw it twitch out of the corner of his eye.

•••••

Behrn slowly opened his eyes, but quickly squinted as he was assaulted by bright fluorescent lights. He opened his mouth to speak, but could only manage a croak.  
“Where… am I?” Leos almost jumped from his seat as he heard the words. He slowly stood up, and realized that he hadn’t really looked at the pilot since he found them in the wreckage. They had deep black hair, with tan skin and an athletic body, not unlike one most Strider pilots were expected to have. Slowly, the pilot attempted to rise from the bed, until they fell back after a jolt of pain shot through their spine.

“Don’t try to get up!” Leos said all too late. Behrn just muttered to himself.  
“And about your question before, you’re in the infirmary of one of the Interstellar Exploration Union’s many mobile bases. Do you remember what happened before you were here?” Behrn groaned, searching his half-awake mind for an answer. After a minute, he spoke again.  
“I remember a little about what happened. I think… I think I got struck by lightning. I don’t really remember anything else.” Leos nodded.  
“Do you remember who you were travelling with, if anyone?” Behrn shook his head. He almost closed his eyes before hearing a loudspeaker crackle to life.

“Leos Aila, please report to the east wing’s conference room. The captain has requested that you disclose all information on the Strider you were sent to investigate. Again, Leos Aila, report to the east wing’s conference room.” Leos stood up and bolted for the door, already stressing about what was to come of the request. Behrn almost spoke, but chose instead to close his eyes again. He had a feeling he was going to be in the base for a while...


End file.
